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Archive for the ‘Car Tax Credits’ Category

Question: How much are the repair cost for Hybrid vehicles in the long run (regardless of the brand)?

I am in the market for a new car and I was considering buying a hybrid. Mainly because of all the benefits and the model i am interested in buying is eligible for a $3400 tax credit. However, I am the type of person to buy a new car and drive it for years (of course keeping up on maintenance).

I still wonder how much are the repair cost (minor and major) for the long run after the glitz and glamor and the warranty expires and the car has 150,000+ miles on it. I can imagine it may be expensive to repair or replace some of the technical hybrid components in these vehicles. I already know that many independent shops do not service hybrid vehicles because of all the advance equipment.

The model I am considering is the 2010 Mercury Milan hybrid

http://www.mercuryvehicles.com/2010milan/

Answer: At this point, that’s pretty much an unknown, and some small shops won’t have a clue as to what to do with them. Those that are battery operated, with a small gasoline engine to drive an alternator to keep the battery charged will be simply enough if it’s the gasoline engine that’s the problem, but for anything else it would need to go to the dealer for repair.

In my primary business, which is towing, I don’t care what’s under the hood, I can tow it where you want it.

One study indicates this:

SAN DIEGO, Feb. 9 /PRNewswire/ — Audatex North America Inc. today released the Winter 2009 volume of its industry trends publication, Audatex Directions.

The feature article in this latest issue provides an in-depth exploration of the factors that drive hybrid repair costs. Audatex vehicle and repair data shows that, on average in 2008, the Toyota Prius cost 8.4 percent more to repair than gasoline-powered economy imports, while hybrid vehicles that have gasoline counterparts averaged 3.8 percent more to repair than their counterparts.

You can read the full article here: http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS106774+09-Feb-2009+PRN20090209

Woes afforded Markell no break-in period

Governor’s first year forced tough moves

2010 MERCEDES-BENZ S-CLASS Fayetteville, AR

Question: I have a rather serious situation on my hands that concerns the irs and the franchise tax boards.?

I owe the irs 67,000 and the franchise tax board 23,000. We tried to set up an installment agreement and they were asking for 2,300 a month. My husband and i make 5,000 a month between the two of us. Our house payment is 1573.00 a month. Our house is worth about 200,000 and we owe 181,000 on our house. we dont have enough equity to pay them off. We cannot refinance because we have bad credit and a lien on our house. I really need some advice. our marriage is about to go out window because of this situation. i dont know whether to fill bankruptcy, or what. we have no credit cards, or other debt other than utility bills, our cars are paid for. we have 3 kids at home. pls advice me what to do, before we loose everything…

Answer: The IRS is not a pleasant creditor – they have lots of hammers (lien, levy, and seizure) to use on you. Also, just because you have an agreement with one IRS employee doesn’t mean the next individual will honor that agreement. To further complicate matters, you may be dealing with one or more departments (called divisions) within the agency. What are your options?

Pay all at one time. If you had that kind of money you wouldn’t be in this mess.
Pay in installments. It may be the deal for you but again it may not be. Interest on the outstanding debt compounds daily.
Make them a settlement offer. It is a good deal if you can swing it but the numbers don’t work out for everyone.
Bankruptcy. That ugly word no one wants to say but sometimes is the only way out.

The Collection Process

After your return is filed without full payment, you will get three letters. Then the phone calls begin. After about a year, there is a knock at your door. In the meantime, they may have kept a subsequent year refund, filed a lien on your real estate, and levied your bank account or your paycheck. At this point, they have the power to seize property and close down businesses.

Early Options

Owing money to the IRS is like a dead animal in the forest: the longer it lays there, the worse it smells. The earlier your attempt to resolve the problem, the more options you have. In the later stages of the process your options are severely limited.

Option 1: Borrow If You Can

The “failure to pay” penalty and interest are added to all amounts unpaid after April 15. Interest compounds daily, and the amount of tax, penalty, and interest can double after about two years. Hence, a good reason to try to borrow money from a bank, friend, or relative. Before the IRS will accept any kind of installment pay agreement, you may be required to show that you have attempted to borrow the money elsewhere.

Option 2: Ask for an Installment Agreement

When you receive your first letter, you may write the IRS, tell them your “sad story” and request that they send you a copy of Form 433-A, 433-B, or 433-F (financial information statements). Possibly you can work out an installment agreement with the “computer.”

NOTE: If you owe less than $10,000 and are current with all other payments and filings, you can complete a Form 9465, Installment Payment Request, and set your own payment amount.

Option 3: Ask for Case Assignment to Revenue Officer

Or, you may write the IRS and request that your account be assigned to a Revenue Officer. Sometimes, it is easier to negotiate a payout agreement with a live person.

Option 4: Ask for Forms to be Mailed

If you ignore the letters, you will receive a phone call from ACS (the IRS Automated Collection System). Your options are the same as “A” and “B” above. Do not answer their questions over the phone, as they are completing the Forms 433-A and 433-B for you. Instead, ask that they mail you the forms for you to complete.

Option 5: IRS Installment Agreements

The Taxpayers Bill of Rights passed in November 1988 grants the IRS authority, under certain conditions, to allow payment of taxes on an installment basis. These conditions include:

Proof of attempt to borrow money from a bank
All current forms, such as 1040, 941, 949, 1040 and 1120, are filed timely
All current taxes must be paid through withholding or estimated tax payments
Completion of Forms 433-A, 433-B, or 433-F

Option 6: HELP from 9 – 1 – 1

Form 911 is a form to use when there is an EMERGENCY. The official title of Form 911 is Application for Taxpayer Assistance Order. We usually shorten it to “hardship.” Should the action being taken by the IRS create a substantial hardship, a Form 911 may be appropriate. When an IRS employee receives a 911, they are required to take action within days. Most always they will cease all collection activity until the problem posed in the Form 911 has been resolved. In the mean time you and your representative have had time to get information organized, forms completed, and other data the IRS Collection Division has requested. Form 911 buys time and helps get the problem solved quicker.

Option 7: Offer in Compromise

This may be just the deal for you. Form 656, Offer in Compromise, is a procedure whereby you can offer the IRS a amount to settle your complete tax, interest, and penalty debt. The minimum amount the IRS will settle for is you “net equity in assets” plus the “net monthly cash flow” for five years. “Net equity in assets” is the net liquidating value of your assets less the debts owed. “Net monthly cash flow” is calculated by using your monthly income less your necessary living expenses times 60 months times present value. Roughly it is net monthly cash flow times 50. Forms 433-A and B are used to arrive at these numbers. If your arithmetic works out to be less than the IRS debt, make them an offer BUT read the conditions listed on the Form 656 BEFORE you make the offer. There are some down sides.

Option 8: Bankruptcy

Income taxes may be discharged in bankruptcy under certain conditions. There is a 3 year and a 240 month rule plus more fine print that you will need to have an attorney interpret. Generally, the tax year needs to be at least three years ago and the tax return needs to have been filed at least 240 days. This may be your only option.

Forms 433

I have found that most people take these forms too lightly. Forms 433-A, 433-B, and 433-F provide the IRS with a list of all employers, bank accounts, and real estate which the y may later seize or levy. Completing these forms accurately and truthfully is crucial. You sign these forms under a penalty of perjury.

The forms also provide a list of income cash and monthly cash expenses. Any excess income over IRS allowed expenses is the amount of your monthly payment to the IRS. The IRS definition of necessary expenses is not the same as mine or yours. On Form 433, living expenses for movies, cleaning, piano lessons, dancing lessons, charitable contributions and non-prescription drugs are not considered necessary expenses. Use the IRS tables for national and local standards for necessary living expenses, housing, and automobile expenses.

Do’s And Don’ts

Do respond timely & early
Do give the appearance of cooperation
Do not let any IRS persons complete the forms 433 for you either over the telephone or in person
Do have a person concentrating on IRS collection problems advise you on the preparation of Forms 433

Options – Pain Relief

Knowing that you have options and what those options are will greatly relieve your worry and stress. The earlier you act the more options you have. The longer you wait, the less the number of options and you may be down to the lesser of two evils. The best strategy is to know your options and develop and offensive plan rather than having to react under pressure and be on the defensive once the IRS has used its hammers (lien, levy, and seizure).

Although the Taxpayer Bill of Rights gave you certain rights, there is very little law to support your position. Your greatest asset is your powers of persuasion. IRS collection personnel are no different than any other “bill collector.” They have a job to do – collect the money. Their favorite tool is intimidation. If you respond to their show of strength and threats, you loose your power to negotiate effectively. It may be that you will want to get a “hired gun.”

A Hired Gun

There are CPAs, attorneys, and enrolled agents who have first hand knowledge of the inter-workings of the IRS Collection Division. When you give them a power of attorney, they can represent you before the IRS. You need someone who can tell you what is going to happen “before it happens.” A person who can help you plan a strategy and operate from an offensive rather than a defensive position. Someone who can “speak the IRS’s language.” A person who can tell when an Unknowledgeable IRS employee has made a statement contrary to IRS national policy. A person who does not intimidate easily and may do a little intimidating themselves. You need someone who can represent you and leave you free to do what you do best – make money!

Free electronic tax filing begins Jan. 23

LEXINGTON – The Lexington Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Coalition (VITA) campaign is gearing up for another tax season. VITA is encouraging taxpayers to check out the earned income tax credit, which is a tax credit available to many low and moderate income working families and individuals.

How Can I Drive More New-Car Sales?

Is your car AC not functioning properly? If your answer is yes, there is a high probability that your electric cooling fan is not functioning properly. Most of the times, we tend to ignore the overheating of the car, thinking the air conditioning is at fault.

But actually, in a high percentage of cases it is the cooling fan which is at fault. Talking in technical terms, the efficiency of the Car’s engine depends, among other factors, on the amount of heat removed from it. And responsible for removing this heat is the cooling fan. Not long ago, belt driven fans were used, but these days , electric cooling fans are used which are more efficient than their belt driven counterparts.

An electric cooling fan is basically made up of two parts- a fan motor and the circuit, which consists of the fan switch and the relay. The switch sends power or ground to the relay. It is the function of the switch in an electric cooling fan to sense the internal temperature and switch on the cooling if required. Usually, when the car is running on the highway, due to high speeds, engine gets the cool air required from the environment itself, so there is no need for the cooling fan. But when the car is being driven at a very low speed or the engine is idling, the engine requires additional airflow to keep it from overheating.

This additional airflow is provided by the electric cooling fan. The proper upkeep and maintenance of the electric cooling fan is vital to your car’s performance. If you are planning to take your car to a doctor for a check up (I mean a mechanic), make sure it is a qualified mechanic. A qualified mechanic has various ways to check whether the electric cooling fan is in proper working condition or not.

One of the ways a mechanic is most likely to use is to directly check the source. He would verify whether there is proper power supply and ground given to the electric fan motor. Another way to identify any problems with your electric cooling fan is to supply a 12V power to the motor and see if it runs. Electric cooling fans are a dangerous car part and must be looked after with extreme care. They not only save power but also help in reducing the noise of the vehicle. So always keep in mind, a healthy electric cooling fan means a healthy car.

A PENNY A MILE: Hull couple leads the charge with zero-emissions vehicle

A Hull couple’s low-cost zero-emissions vehicle, a Club Car Village 2+2, became the first vehicle registered in Massachusetts as a “low-speed vehicle.” While gas prices have jumped to about $2.65, their buggy costs just a penny a mile.   The vehicle has to be plugged in and recharged after going 30 miles, a procedure that adds only a few cents to Connelly and VanHamm’s electric bill.   “These …

Tax Payer Bailout.

Just imagine that you had a really good credit score in the past. However, thanks to the global recession and a case of unemployment in the office, you find yourself falling back on your monthly car loan payments. Not only is it going to give you the reputation of having a poor credit score, but you might also find it quite difficult to pay off your high car loan monthly installments. That is the time when you are going to look online for places where you can get poor credit car loans or look for a facility of bad credit auto refinancing. Yes, it is possible for you to get refinance car loans in poor credit car finance scheme from poor credit car loans providers available in the market.

These bad credit auto refinancing and poor credit car loans providers should give you a better rate of interest; it should also have a monthly payment some which is considerably lower than the one which you used to give, previously. Make sure that there are no additional hidden expenses and costs in the program. Many people are going in for the option of refinance car loans, from poor credit car loans companies in their city today, because they are definitely going to get a better rate of interest. Apart from that, these poor credit car finance companies are going to help them by paying off their remaining car loan, as long as it is greater than USD7500, and from then on, all you have to do is concentrate on paying them back, on a regular monthly installment, at a nominal fixed interest rate on agreed upon sum of money. Not only are you going to save money in the long run, but you are going to have some free cash in hand.

So all you have to do is look at the auto loan, which you have in hand, and then go for a search on the Internet for a poor credit car loans and bad credit auto refinancing service provider, whose terms and conditions are just what you have been looking for all these months. There are plenty of poor credit car finance service providers out there who have quite attractive programs of refinance car loans, but it is necessary that you look at the finer print of all the terms and conditions before you take out a car loan from such Poor credit car loans providers. This new lender is going to pay off the outstanding debt, owed by you on your previous car loan, and from then on, all you have to do is concentrate on making sure that your bad or poor credit reputation does not hinder you from paying back this new poor credit car loan.

Former Car Dealer Ordered to Pay $511,000 to Defrauded Customers

In an order filed Friday in Ashley County Circuit Court, Tenth Judicial District Circuit Judge Sam Pope ordered Ricky Elvin Funderburg to pay a total of $511,738.40 to former customers he defrauded while operating a used car lot in Monticello.

Car Tax Credit

When it comes down to buying a car then you need to do something just to keep your options open. Let us look at it this way, if you are requiring a car loan then your credit history should be evaluated and at that point you will know how much you can take as a loan.

If your credit line was bad then you can’t get a large loan and this means that you have to choose between a smaller numbers of cars. However, if you took certain precautions towards your credit instantly then when you decide to buy a new car you will find yourself in a good position to get the car finance you want.

The first thing you need to do is to keep your credit balance in shape, you need to pay your dues in time, if you are late for paying this then it will be written in your report and this will affect your chances when you go for a loan.

If there is any dispute of any kind about your payment then you need to settle it down at least a month or two before you think of applying for a loan as this will reduce your chances majorly.

It is very useful if you went for a car loan approval just before you hit the show room as this will make you in a better position when you negotiate with your agent for many reasons; let me name some of them. The first reason you are showing commitment, this means that you are ready to buy and in the sales field this is called a pre – closed deal as the client is half – way already. All you have to do, as an agent, is to convince him with your merchandise.

The second reason is that you are showing that you have the ability to buy, and this is also a good incentive for the agent to give you the best price as he knows that you have the capabilities and the money to buy the car. Another reason is that you are putting yourself in the comfort zone, and you will save yourself hundreds of presentations that are away over your budget and let the agent concentrate on the cars within the budget only.

When you are buying a car, the credit history is your back bone. If it is good then you will be able to choose but if it is bad and contains lots and lots of reports then probably you will have to accept any car that you can afford and you can kiss your dream car good bye as you won’t be able to get it unless you work hard on your credit.

Final day to get that tax break for buying a new car

Final day to get that tax break for buying a new car

GloriousNationalParty(GNP)Briefing02/15/2009